Awakening
by fishxcustard
Summary: Helen Magnus has been alone for such a very long time. Sure she has lots of friends, and great ones at that, but it's been so long since anyone has ever really meant anything to her in a special way. She almost can't even remember what it feels like anymore. Magnus/OFC
1. The Stranger

Helen Magnus frowns, startled and quite puzzled upon hearing the chime of the doorbell. They weren't expecting anyone, especially not this late. She sets down her pen, grateful for the distraction from the seemingly endless stack of paperwork. She had to try to convince Will to take on some of it. Even with all the extra time at hand, it was getting to be a bother.

She swept out of the room with her usual grace, not that there was anyone to witness it. She picks up a gun. Just in case. The rest of her cohort was dispersed throughout the Sanctuary. Henry and Tesla were holed up in lab refining the new tracking systems they were developing. Abby and Will were… well, they hadn't had much time alone with each other in a while, and with the recent lull in their workload Abby had been spending her nights here more often than not. Helen only wished they would try to keep it down a little. The big guy had already retired for the night. Helen reflected on the last few weeks, the staccato rapping of her heels on the floor background music for her thoughts.

There wasn't much in the way of concrete information; they'd been operating solely on rumours, whispers from underground sources. Normally they wouldn't expend so much time and resources on an operation running on such limited information, but honestly, there wasn't much else to do. They'd been tracking – or rather, attempting – to track an abnormal slave trading movement for weeks, all to no avail. There was still no evidence to support that the shipment was actually could be tracking something that wasn't there for all they knew.

Feeling confident, gun firmly in her grip, she pulls open the door in one sweeping movement. Helen doesn't recognise the woman at the door, though a smile spreads across her face upon seeing Helen. Well, less of a smile and more of a smirk, really. She was short, barely clearing Helen's shoulders with her in her trademark heels. Her choppy hair was dirty blonde with the ends just tickling her shoulders.

"Sorry, but it's getting quite late. Would you mind-"

The woman cuts Helen off. "I can help."


	2. Compromise

Helen's eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "Sorry?" Helen's head tilts inquisitively, curiosity blooming across her face.

"I know how to help you." The woman's eyes twinkle mischievously, "I have the location of the slave abnormal trade ship." With that statement, she pushes past Helen, navigating the corridors like she owned the place. "You have a nice place, Helen Magnus."

Helen's eyes widen, incredulous as she was somewhat impressed, not that she would ever admit it. There were few bold enough to treat Helen Magnus in such a brusque manner. Despite that, it was entirely unacceptable to have a strange woman roaming her home. Helen quickly followed her. "Excuse me, but who exactly are you? And- hey! Don't you dare go through that door!"

The woman threw a cheeky grin over her shoulder before heading in. "Alright, that's enough." Helen muttered under her breath, pulling out her gun. She stalked into her own bedroom.

The nameless woman was stretched out across her bed, fiddling with her nails. Helen trained the gun on her. "Get out. I don't know who you are, but if you really have the information you say you do, we'll discuss it elsewhere.

The woman seemed to ponder that request for a moment, before lazily stretching out, hands bent behind her head. "No, I'm afraid not, Helen, darling. We get it over with here, or you don't get your information at all." She invitingly patted the space next to her on Helen's own bed.

That smug superiority was the last straw for Helen. She may have been mildly impressed with her boldness to start with, but now... She clicked the gun off safely, the woman's head directly in the firing line of its bullet. Helen moved around to the side of her bed, arms unwavering, ushering the woman in her bed towards the door. "You will tell me who you are, you will tell me how you know so much about me and my home, and then we will speak in my office." Helen demanded, tone icy.

Suddenly, The ground flew out from beneath Helen, and she found herself on her bed, facing the woman in question. Her gun was unarmed and and safely perched on the bedside table closer to her. She made a move to grab it, but the woman seized her around the waist, knocking the wind out of her.

The woman's hair tickled her neck, and her hot breath ghosted over her ear. "The shipment is due in at the bay tomorrow. You let me stay here for a week, and I'll give you the exact time." She pulled back.

Helen threw her a suspicious look, assessing this mysterious woman, wondering if she could really trust her. "Fine. But only one week. And I need to know everything about the shipment. Don't withhold any information from me."

The woman smiled, holding her hand out to shake Helen's and seal the deal. "Name's Eliza. I think you'll enjoy working with me."


	3. Eliza

Helen ran her fingers through her hair, heavily falling into the armchair in her office. Her entire body seemed to sink into it, weighed down with relief and exhaustion. She had managed to coax Eliza into her office and glean the exact location, size and time of the shipment coming in tomorrow. She was still weary of the stranger; after all, this woman had turned up late in the night, alone, with a bribe of information. Information she coincidentally happened to desperately need. Now that it was sorted, however, she had to find out who this woman was.

"I thought you would never stop pacing. I was worried you were going to ware a hole into the floor." Eliza joked, twiddling her thumbs. She also seemed relieved the inquisition was over. Helen hated to burst her bubble. She decided the best way to proceed was with nonchalance and wheedle the information out of her. There was no need to be forceful. Not yet, anyways.

Helen grinned, albeit tiredly. "We've been working bloody hard for towards this for a while now. It's great to have some new leads." Helen really hoped this woman was telling the truth. Either way, she planned to approach the location tomorrow with caution in case it was a trap. "Never mind that, tell me about yourself. Who are you running from?"

Eliza shifted nervously in her seat. Helen had first been taken aback by her sudden timidness, but she had soon grown accustomed to it. Her initial boldness must have been a cover up to get what she wanted. She admired the little show she had put on, but it made her just that much wearier of her. If she could change her personality like flicking a switch, who knew what she was hiding… "That obvious, is it?"

Helen's lip twitched. "I don't get many lone women at my doorstep with no belongings who aren't. So, who is it? For the safety of my Sanctuary and yourself, I need to know."

"I'm a… nomad, of sorts. I do odd jobs for rich people, basically. Sometimes it involves work with abnormals, other times not. I'll do anything really, no matter how dangerous, as long as it puts food on the table. My only exception is that I won't do anything that involves anyone getting hurt. Human or abnormal alike." She paused to take a sip from the glass in front of her. Helen was beginning to develop respect for this woman. Even during Kate's days on the road, she had been uncaring of the nature of her job, as long it paid well.

She set her glass down. "Recently I've been doing jobs for this one guy, mostly just picking up and delivering goods to dangerous locations. He assured me it was all for research, and no harm would come to any of the live specimens. He showed me the legal documents and everything. But after a few deliveries, he asked me to help out with the slave ship. Unload the abnormals and what not." Eliza's lip twitched with distaste.

"When I refused, he threatened to kill me. He said I knew too much about the shipment to let me live if I wasn't going to cooperate. So I ran. In my time, I've heard much about your Sanctuary, and the formidable Helen Magnus. I figured you were my best shot."

Helen pondered her story. It didn't seem at all unreasonable, especially with all the abnormal movement lately. She very much reminded her of Kate. Well, a much shyer version. "Seems reasonable enough." Helen wasn't worried about her employer coming after her. She could tell he was just after money. He wouldn't waste resources on tracking down one woman. Either way, she wasn't going to put a whole lot of trust in this woman right off the bat. Helen stood, gesturing for her to follow. She began to lead her to the residential quarters.

"So do I live up to your expectations? The formidable Helen Magnus?" She tossed a grin over her shoulder toward Eliza.

"Well so far… not really. I didn't expect you to be so nice." Helen laughed. It was better for her to not be aware of what she was capable anyways. Just to be safe.


End file.
